Wings of Flame
by fyrechild
Summary: [ch 8] Draco's got a stalker, which turns out to be rather unhealthy for poor Ginny. Meanwhile, what the hell is with these damn dreams?? And animals even Hagrid can't control?!?
1. Disclaimer

DISCLAIMER: Much as I would like to claim all these lovely characters (especially Draco *drools*) as mine, they were all created by the wonderful goddess JKR.  Rated PG-13 for mild language and some possible "themes" later.

So hi everyone!  This is my first ever fanfic, so please tell me what you think of it!  I posted this story earlier, but had to set it aside for countless (okay, maybe 5) horrid months.  But I'm back!  So I will be posting the first 7 chapters (which are the ones already written) every few days until I get back up to speed.  Hope you enjoy!!


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1 

Virginia Anne Weasley was not having a good day.  

After a long night of tossing and turning due to disturbing dreams that she couldn't quite remember, she woke up half an hour late; her alarm was set for the wrong time, and she had a nasty feeling it wasn't an accident.  Then, in the subsequent rushing around, trying to get ready for class in time, she spilled a bottle of ink all over her Transfiguration essay due later that day.  She wasn't sure Professor McGonnagal would let her recopy it without taking points off for being late.  The rest of the morning hadn't gone too badly; McGonnagal had looked over her essay and seen the real work under the ink stains, and had taught her a handy charm to remove them with out removing her work- that would definitely be useful again!  But, just as she was beginning to think that her day wouldn't be so bad after all, she was abruptly proven wrong.

Right before Potions, her last class of the day, she was absentmindedly making her way down the stairs to the dungeons when she tripped and tumbled head-over-heels to the bottom of the stairwell. Since she had been near the top when she fell, this proved a long fall.  She shrieked in pain as her leg just below the knee hit the corner of a stair with an ominous-sounding _crack_, but when her head hit stone, she spiraled down into blessed darkness.

Just before consciousness faded completely, she thought she heard a cruel chuckle from above her.

*     *     * 

Pansy Parkinson was pleased with herself.  She had finally gotten her revenge on that disgusting red-haired Weasel girl by casting the strongest bad-luck charm she knew on her- and since her father ran Parkinson's Practical Jokes in Knockturn Alley, he had taught her some _very_ interesting little numbers before she left for school this year.

_Ha_, she thought smugly, _that'll teach the little twit to stay away from my Drakie.  Once he hears about this, the only one in his dreams is going to be **me**_. 

*     *     * 

[One week ago]

Draco Malfoy woke up Tuesday morning feeling as if he hadn't slept at all.  He munched his way through breakfast in a daze, barely noticing when that vacant idiot Parkinson started babbling at him about what she was doing that day.  As if he cared.  _That slut really needs to calm down and back the hell off sometimes.  _The blond sixth year snorted softly to himself. _ Who am I kidding, she needs to back the hell off **all** the time_.  Then his gaze fell across the youngest Weasley child; he frowned slightly, remembering why he was so tired.  _Why in the world was she, of all people, in my dream?_ he asked himself, confused and baffled.  That dream…

_-------_

Draco stood at the edge of a precipice.  He turned around to see what was behind him; only gray, desolate plains greeted his gaze.  Looking down- far, far down- he saw lush fields and forests, with a small herd of animals grazing quietly in the largest clearing.  Out of curiosity, he tried to see what they were.  Odd, they almost seemed to shift form… nonsense, no animals could do that; none that he had heard of, anyway.  Finally, their distant forms resolved into- well, he thought they were horses,  but there was something odd about them.  Smaller forms moved among them; he thought they might be humans, but they could very well be something else- some kind of wild creature, certainly.  All of a sudden, the herd down below spooked at something Draco couldn't see, and he quickly realized what was different about them.

They were winged unicorns.

Draco stared in amazement as the herd of beautiful creatures flew higher and higher.  He had never heard of winged unicorns before- winged horses, sure, regular unicorns, of course, he had seen them in the Forbidden Forest, but these… 

One thing puzzled him.  He knew unicorns were always white when adults, and he was pretty sure that winged horses were the same way- he remembered that big oaf, Hagrid, talking about Pegasi in Care of Magical Creatures class, and he had definitely mentioned that. These creatures were all the colors that ordinary horses came in- he could see a fair number of white ones, certainly more than were normal with ordinary horses, but they were less than half of the herd.  There were chestnuts of various shades, bays, grays, even a few black ones.  Their horns were all a shiny, white mother-of-pearl type of substance, though- just like normal unicorns.  

As the lovely creatures- alicorns, he thought suddenly- drew closer, he gasped in shock.  The other things he had seen among them- they were humans, and they were now on the back of a few of the alicorns!  There was no one he recognized, of course- at least, he thought there wasn't.  

Then, an unusually close cluster of animals broke apart to reveal an exquisite copper-chestnut alicorn with wings of flame.  Seated on its back was a stunningly beautiful girl with a glorious cascade of rich, red curls that surely fell down past her slim waist when they weren't blown back by the wind of her mount's passage.  She was clad in a simple white sleeveless robe that had been slit up the sides nearly to her hip to allow her to ride, showing off slim, shapely legs, which seemed all the paler next to her fiery mount's coat.  The flame-haired young goddess rode higher and higher, but Draco still couldn't see her face- either the alicorn's wings or her own wind-tossed hair obscured the view.  

Suddenly the lovely pair shot upwards past him to circle above his head.  He peered up, desperate to catch a glimpse of this beautiful girl.  Who was she?  That long red hair looked so familiar…

The alicorn dove down, startling him as it backwinged to a graceful landing.  The girl's heartbreakingly beautiful face turned to him, and with a shock he recognized-

"Ginny Weasley!" he sputtered.  "But why- how-"

"There's no time to explain," she answered hurriedly.  "Get on, quickly!  They'll be here any minute!"

"Who will?  And why-" His question was cut short as she gasped and pointed behind him.  He whirled to see his father and a horde of other prominent Death Eaters racing towards him, shouting and waving swords and wands menacingly.  

"You'll pay for your treachery, boy!" his father shouted furiously.  Behind him, Ginny shouted a spell that he didn't understand, but he suddenly found himself seated precariously behind her, and he had to grab onto her waist to keep from falling.  The alicorn turned quicker than a striking snake and dove off the cliff, snapping its wings open to catch the wind.

"Alright, what's going on?"  Draco shouted into the wind.  "Why the hell-" 

His question was again cut short as the lovely redhead in his arms turned, grabbed his head, and pulled his lips to hers in a kiss that burned through him like a wildfire.  His arms closed around her and-

--------

Draco Malfoy woke up to his alarm blaring and slapped the damn thing, gasping.  What the hell was going on?

A/N- Pegasi is the plural of Pegasus.  In mythology, the Pegasus that what's-his-name rode to defeat the Hydra was the last stallion left of Zeus's private herd.  In my world, there were more around somewhere so they didn't really die out ^_^ I love horsies!! Lol. 

So whadja think? Wanna know what's up with the dream?  Think I'm out of my gourd? Let me know!!


	3. Chapter 2

Thanks to my one and only reviewer, Keita!  (I know it is a bit cheesy, but that's half the fun.  Besides, it was just a description, and not quite a Pegasus!) That done, on with your regularly scheduled story update!

Chapter 2 

[Still a week ago]

As Draco stumbled through his day, his thoughts kept returning to that bizarre dream.  Why the hell had he dreamt of that Weasley brat?  She definitely wasn't that pretty in real life, so why had he seen her as this blindingly beautiful creature?

As the disgruntled sixth year sat down to lunch, Blaise Zabini looked at him sideways over his sandwich.  "Malfoy, you feeling alright?" he rumbled.  Draco didn't answer.  "Oy!  Malfoy!" He jumped when Zabini poked him in the arm to get his attention. "What's wrong with you today? You've been completely out of it all morning.  I mean, ignoring annoying Griffs is one thing, but you've barely spoken a word to anyone.  What's going on?"

Draco sighed and ran a hand through his hair.  "I'm not sure, really.  Well-" he narrowed his eyes, trying to see if Zabini would laugh at him.

"Seriously Drake, try me."

"Fine, then," Draco grumbled, then hesitated, trying to find a way to explain his dream without sounding like a total idiot.  "I just had this- odd dream last night…"  he trailed off, thinking of her, then jumped again when Zabini cleared his throat.  "Sorry.  The dream.  Right."  He filled him in on the basic idea of the dream, but left out the identity of the girl, or the fact that it was his father shouting at him; instead, he made it sound like it was just some random girl and a faceless mass of angry men.

Zabini looked at him thoughtfully.  Was he hiding something? _Hmmm… I think he knows more than he's saying about that girl.  And the mob, for that matter_.  "You sure you didn't know who she was?"

Draco flushed slightly, his eyes darting over to the Gryffindor table, then back.  Zabini followed his glance, narrowing his eyes shrewdly as he saw Ginny Weasley talking and laughing with the Golden Boy and his friends.  "So."

"Buttons," Draco replied sarcastically

Blaise snorted.  "Fine, tell me about her later if you want.  But I still know who she is."  He held up his hand implacably when Draco started sputtering at him.  "I don't think so, man!  I've known you since you were 5, I can read you like a book."

"Fine," Draco sighed, "I'll talk to you about it later."

Both boys failed to notice Pansy's narrowed eyes as she looked at Draco, then Ginny in speculation.  They widened as she saw Draco stare at the redhead again.  _Why, that little bitch,_ she thought venomously.  _How dare she invade my Draco's dreams?!?  He's MINE!!_

*    *    *

[Back in the present]

Draco walked down the stairs to the dungeon, deep in thought.  As it was his free period, he hoped Snape wasn't busy; he definitely needed some advice…

He looked down, shocked, to see Ginny Weasley sprawled on the floor at the bottom of the stairs.  With no more thought to Snape, he clattered down the rest of the steps and ran to her side.  She was unconscious, and as he turned her head to the side, he noticed a small pool of blood underneath it.  _Oh, Merlin,_ he thought, panicked.  _She needs to get to the hospital wing NOW, but I don't know if it's safe to move her!_  He ransacked his mind for something that could help, then snapped his fingers in triumph.  "Of course!"  He muttered a spell to conjure a stretcher under the fallen girl, then carefully levitated her up the stairs.  About halfway to the Hospital wing he ran into Hermione Granger, who blanched when she saw Ginny in front of him.

"What happened?" she demanded.  "What have you done to her?"

"First of all, Granger, the only thing I've done is get her this far," he said, his arms trembling slightly with strain, "but it's not a short walk from the dungeons to here, so would you mind giving me a hand so I don't drop her?"

She paled again, but to her credit quickly helped him support Ginny; they made much better time on the second leg of their journey than Draco had alone on the first.  Madame Pomfrey came out into the hall as they approached, gasping as she saw the stretcher.  "My goodness, what happened?  Never mind, bring her here, bring her here!"

Once the white-faced nurse had bustled Ginny inside the main ward, Draco and Hermione were left standing in the atrium, looking at a closed door.  Draco sighed, frustrated, and sat down in the chairs set out for anxiously waiting friends and family.  

Hermione gave him a sharp look.  "So why exactly did you bring her up, anyway?" she asked, softening when she saw the honest worry on his face.  

He looked up, irritated.  "What, you think I'd really leave someone bleeding from a head wound at the bottom of the stairs?  I'm not _that_ much of a prick, no matter what Potter and Weasley may tell you."

"No, it's not that.. I just wondered why you didn't get someone else instead of doing it yourself.  A teacher or something."

"I didn't want to risk leaving her there.  For all I knew, Snape could be swooping around the castle, not in his classroom.  I didn't want to have to run halfway across the castle to find someone when I could do it just as well," he replied softly.  

Hermione sat back and thought about this for a while, every now and then giving Draco a measuring look.

After about fifteen minutes of fidgeting, both of them jumped when Madame Pomfrey opened the door and smiled at them.  "She'll be fine, dears, you got her to me in time."  She frowned a bit, and continued, "Though why she was in that condition in the first place…" 

Neither student paid much attention to her, and pushed past her into the ward to see Ginny laying in a hospital bed, looking groggy and in a certain amount of pain.  

"Ginny!" Hermione ran over to her.  "What happened?  How do you feel?"  Draco hovered in the background, not knowing what to do.  Ginny groaned a bit, but answered.

"I'm not quite sure what happened, actually.  I tripped on the way down the stairs…"  She frowned, remembering that evil laugh, and shuddered involuntarily.

"What?" asked Hermione, "What is it?"  She frowned when Ginny shrugged uneasily, reaching down to rub her leg where it had been broken; now it was just sore, but she still remembered the pain.  "It sounds odd, I know, but… just before I blacked out, I… I could have sworn I heard someone- laughing." She shuddered again, then said too brightly, "I'm probably just imagining things. I hit my head after all."  Draco quietly stepped out while the two girls continued talking.  

"Madame Pomfrey?" he asked hesitantly.

"Yes dear?" 

"How long will she have to stay here?"  The kindly-looking nurse assured him that she would be fine in a few days, but Draco remained troubled as he walked down the hall.  He shook himself suddenly; what was he doing, getting all worried about a Weasley?  She didn't give a lead Knut about him, why should he care?  He forced himself into a jauntier stride as he walked back to the dungeons to get his books for his next class, but uneasy thoughts still lurked at the back of his mind.  

*    *    *

Later that night, Ginny slept in the hospital wing, tossing and turning in the grip of a nightmare.  Draco looked at her in subdued wonder, remembering his dream.  In the moonlight, her features were clarified and refined to the startling beauty he remembered.  She whimpered as she twisted on the narrow bed, then gasped and sat bolt upright as she suddenly awoke.  Draco jumped, startled, and the frightened young woman whirled to look at him.  She tensed slightly, and said, "What are you doing here?"

"I was worried about you," Draco said, unthinking, then mentally cursed himself for admitting it while her eyes widened.  He opened and shut his mouth a few times, trying to think of a good excuse, but soon gave up and slumped back in his chair with his head on his hand.

"Hermione said you found me…" she said slowly, then paused for a second, biting her lip.  "Why were you worried about me?"

Slightly hesitant, Draco looked at her, seeing curiosity and a bit of fear in her eyes.  "I heard you say you heard someone laughing-"

"No," she interrupted, "I mean why does it matter to you?  I'm a Weasley."

Draco stared her in the eye uneasily for a moment, then looked down at his hands.  "Never mind that."  He cast around, looking to change the subject.  "What were you dreaming about?"  His gaze sharpened when she flushed and looked down, a mumbled "Nothing," not fooling him in the slightest.  He sat back a bit, and his jaw dropped.  Could she have dreamt of him, as he had of her?  But then, why had she been so frightened by the dream?  He had been startled and made nervous, but not frightened… "Come on," he said, "you might feel better if you talk about it."  His thoughts were confirmed when she still refused to look at him or speak of the dream, and he sighed in frustration.  "Fine then," he said wearily, and stood up to leave.  

"Hey,"  Ginny asked abruptly, "How did you get in here anyway?  It's halfway across the school from the dungeons, how did you manage it without getting caught?"

Draco grinned and swung a silvery cloak that had been hidden on his lap over his shoulders.  His body immediately disappeared.  "What, you think Potter gets all the cool toys, but not me?" he asked mockingly, grinning at her astonished expression.  "I begged Father for one once I realized how his head appeared in Hogsmeade third year."  He frowned.  "You and Granger are lucky you weren't involved in that little prank.  I still owe Potter and Weasley a handful of mud to the face."  He smirked mock-thoughtfully while Ginny stifled a grin rather unsuccessfully.  "Each."

Draco winked in farewell, pulled the hood of the cloak up over his head, said, "Sweet dreams!" and quietly- but not quite silently- walked over to the exit.  He opened  the door, and then closed it softly without going through it.  Maybe if she thought he wasn't here…

Ginny drew her knees up to her chest and kept watching the door; he could tell by the way she kept oh-so-still that she was also listening for his footsteps.  He slowed his breathing to the point that it was inaudible, and stayed absolutely silent and unmoving.

Finally the girl sighed and hugged her knees, resting her chin on them.  "Merlin, Merlin, why him?  And why…" she trailed off in mid thought and shuddered as Draco cursed silently- and quite fluently- in multiple languages.   _It _was_ me in her dream, but why is she so afraid?  And what happened that didn't in my dream?_

Draco was forced to stay absolutely quiet over by the door as Ginny laid down again in the hospital cot.  Eventually, after what seemed to him an agonizingly long wait, her breathing slowed somewhat and she turned over so she wasn't facing the door.  He held back his sigh of relief and slowly, silently- begging the doors not to squeak- opened the doors just enough so he could slip out into the hallway and close them softly behind him.  He turned to look at the door once more, then shook his head and padded back to his dormitory to sleep.

**** You know the drill, if you want quicker updates, review!! *****


	4. Chapter 3

A/N- Again, very few reviewers.  ::pouts:: this is really discouraging, folks… Anyway, thanks to Keita again, eegurl, and Raven Cross!  BTW, people, if and when you do leave a review for anyone, it's really much more helpful if you at least say what you liked or disliked, like some of those lovely people I just mentioned. ^_^  So yeah.  Updating again- I have up to chapter 8 completely written, with the little things I didn't like re-written.  Chapter 8 is in the works, but it's really hard to get going again after a 5-month hiatus! 

Okay then, on with your regularly scheduled story update!

Chapter 3 

Draco yawned his way through breakfast the next morning; he hadn't gotten back to his room until about 3, so he was exhausted.  

"Late night?" Zabini drawled next to him.

Draco stifled another yawn and shrugged.  "Just the usual insomnia.  Went for a walk to see if I could tire myself out."  Zabini just nodded in answer and took another bite of toast.

"Oh, poor Draco," Pansy simpered, "I bet I could help you get to sleep…"

Draco shot her a look of disgust, then got up from the table and went to class.  

Pansy sighed in happiness.  _He does love me, I knew it… he just doesn't like to show it in front of his friends.  But he will soon… oh yes, he will…_

*   *   *   

Harry, Ron and Hermione visited Ginny right after a quick lunch.  "Hey, Gin!  How're you feeling?" Harry asked cheerfully.

"Much better, thanks," she answered, smiling.  She had spent half of the past summer at a friend's house; much to her surprise, when she came home and Harry came to visit for the final two weeks of vacation, she had discovered that she now only felt friendship for the kind, funny young man.  She found that she much preferred it this way; once Harry realized that she no longer had a crush on him, he felt free to become her friend- and they were very close friends now, indeed.  

Madame Pomfrey came bustling over to check on her just then.  She unwrapped the bandage from Ginny's head, scrutinized the now-closed wound carefully, probing with gentle fingers, and pronounced her free to go.  "You should probably take the rest of the day off, though, dear.  Can't have you over-working yourself, now can we?"  Ginny grinned widely and thanked her; she had been getting dreadfully bored sitting here by herself.  

"Wonderful!" Hermione exclaimed as they walked out of the infirmary.  "Now you have the rest of the afternoon to catch up on the schoolwork you missed!"  Harry and Ron groaned, laughing at the indignant expression on their friend's face.

Ginny giggled, then said, "It's a lovely day, I think I actually might grab my work and take it out to that big rock by the lake."

"That does sound nice," Hermione said wistfully.  "I wish we could have Potions outside instead of in those damp, dark dungeons."

"I wish we didn't have Potions at all!" Ron said ruefully.  Harry fervently agreed, then glanced down at his watch.

"Bloody hell!" he swore.  "We've only got five minutes 'til Potions starts!"  The three sixth years hurriedly said goodbye to Ginny, then tore off down the hallway, Ron cursing under his breath.  Ginny giggled again, then walked off to gather her assignments from her teachers.

*   *   *

As Ginny worked in the bright fall sunshine, she paused in the middle of her Charms homework.  Why in Merlin's name had Malfoy been in her dream?  And why _had_ he been worried about her?  She frowned in thought, then shook it off and finished her assignment.  _There, finished,_ she thought.  Looking at her watch, she saw that it was only 3:30- still two hours until dinner.  _I really don't feel like going in now, it's still so lovely out here!_  She decided that she could afford to sunbathe and dream a little; the sun wouldn't go down until about 6:15 or 6:30, she'd go in long before then.

She laid down on the sun-warmed rock, gazing up at a sky that was that clear, intense blue that only comes in the fall, watching the clouds go by.  Her eyes slowly drifted closed, and she fell asleep.

*   *   *

Ginny found herself wandering through a foggy field.  _What now,_ she thought wearily; seeing nothing of interest around her, she walked forwards into the mist.  A forest loomed dark in front of her, so she shrugged and ambled in.  

As she wandered through the dark, misty forest, she started to hear murmuring voices, too soft to be understood.  She shivered slightly; something about them seemed so _eerie_ all of a sudden… 

Suddenly she heard a voice she had last heard, except in dreams, almost four years ago.

_"Ginny..."_ the voice whispered softly, _"Ginny, come to me…"_

She gasped and, picking a direction at random, started to run.  She hadn't gone more than a hundred feet when she came to a tiny clearing in the trees.  Standing in the middle of it was a form she had hoped she would never see again.

Tom Riddle stood before her, holding his arms out imploringly.  Unlike her previous dreams, however, he was filmy and see-through, like a ghost.  This registered in a flash, and she immediately bolted through the trees in a different direction.  No matter which way she ran, though, a different horrible scene greeted her terrified eyes.  

Her parents stood, surrounded by robed and masked Death Eaters, brave until three or four voices shouted, "Crucio!" She ran on before she could see more than a few seconds of their terrible screams.

Her brothers, bound to trees in a row, cried out in agony as more Death Eaters tortured them with different spells- ones that left visible, horrible damage.  She thought she'd go mad if she had to see much more of this-

Harry, wounded and on his knees, guarded a fallen Hermione from an ever-closing circle of yet more black-robed figures.  An evil cackle sounded, and Voldemort's filmy shape materialized behind the pair as one Death Eater moved forward with a sacrificial knife as long as Ginny's arm.

Finally, after tearing her way through brambles and thorns, she burst into a small meadow, and into the arms of a tall, leanly muscular young man.  She didn't see his face right away, but she instinctively knew that he wouldn't hurt her- he was there to help, to protect her.  His strong arms encircled her,  one hand stroking her hair.  

"Shh, shh, it's alright love.  I'm here now."

She looked up into the handsome, gently smiling face of Draco Malfoy, his silver-gray eyes alight with- was that love?  She didn't know what else to call it, but somehow it didn't bother her.  She knew that he wasn't like his father- like the others…

He leaned down and kissed her gently, comfortingly, then straightened and looked in her eyes again.  "Ginny, you can't stay here. You have to go find him."

"Who?" she tried to say as he shook his head.

"You know," he answered softly, then kissed her again, stepped back, and vanished.

Ginny looked around her frantically, but he was nowhere to be found.  Trembling, she pushed her way through another stand of trees to a much larger, suddenly sunlit meadow where an astonishing sight greeted her eyes.

_Alicorns._

She knew what they were without having to think about it, these lovely, rare creatures.  The most magnificent stallion of the herd walked up to her, shining coppery red, nearly glowing in the light of the sun.

"Aestus," she breathed.  _Flame of passion_, it meant- and it fit this amazing animal perfectly.  He was fiery, hot-tempered, and passionate- and he was hers, if any of these animals could be considered to belong to anyone.  As she stood there, gazing at him in wonder, she realized that her clothes had somehow changed when she walked into the clearing.  She now wore a simple sleeveless white robe, slit up the sides nearly to her hip.  As she wondered how that had happened, Ron, Hermione and Harry ran up to her.

"Ginny!" Ron gasped.  "Hurry, you have to find him!"

"Who?" she started to ask, but before the word was even finished, Hermione cut her off.

"Draco!  He's in danger, _they_ know, you have to find him before _they_ do!"

Harry butted in.  "Gin, you know as well as I do that if _they_ get their hands on him, we're all done for.  Everything you saw in the woods-" she gasped and he nodded grimly.  "That forest showed what might happen if we don't get him back."

Ginny stared at him, eyes wide.  "What-"  She faltered, then tried again.  "What do I have to do?"

The trio parted in front of her, leaving her path to Aestus clear.

Before she knew what happened, she was mounted and flying up to the top of the cliff that loomed above them.  As Aestus climbed higher and higher, she saw a small figure far above her, and knew it was Draco.  Filled with determination, she urged her mount on until they flashed above the cliff and landed beside Draco.  

"Ginny Weasley!" he sputtered.  "But why- how-"

"There's no time to explain," she answered hurriedly.  "Get on, quickly!  They'll be here any minute!"

"Who will?  And why-" She gasped and pointed, interrupting him as she spotted a mob of angry Death Eaters racing toward them.  Draco whirled, cursing and backing up when he saw them- how could they move that fast?

"You'll pay for your treachery, boy!" his father shouted furiously.  Ginny shouted a spell that she didn't understand; she had no idea what she was saying, but still knew what it would do.  Draco suddenly appeared behind her, grabbing onto her waist for balance.  As soon as Aestus felt him settle slightly, he turned and dove off the cliff, spreading his wings to catch the air.

"Alright, what's going on?"  Draco shouted into the wind.  "Why the hell-" 

His question was again cut short as Ginny turned, grabbed his head, and pulled his lips to hers in a kiss that burned through them both like a wildfire.  His arms closed around her and he kissed her back, hungrily.

Draco pulled away, cradling her face in his hand, then jerked in pain and was pulled off Aestus's back by some kind of spell.  Ginny felt her stomach plummet as she reached for him, and screamed "NO!!"

*   *   *

Draco paced moodily along the lake shore just before dinner; why couldn't he get that damned Weasley girl out of his head?  She was just a damned Mudblood-lover…

He sighed and ran his hands through his hair.  He knew Father's lies were complete and utter rubbish by now; how could he not?  It was obvious to anyone who cared to look that muggle-borns like Granger could be just as brilliant- or not- as purebloods.  _After all,_ he thought wryly, _anyone can see that idiots like Goyle and Longbottom could have just as well been born Muggles- or Squibs, for that matter_.  

He rounded a small grove of willows to see the cause of his sleepless nights curled up on a large flat boulder that jutted out from the shore of the lake.  He noticed, sourly, that she seemed to be asleep.  _She, of course, sleeps like a bloody baby,_ was his annoyed thought, deliberately overlooking the nightmare she'd had in the hospital wing.

As he drew nearer to her, she started whimpering slightly, and he frowned.  Those were the same sounds she'd made the night before, when he'd watched her…

Draco decided to ask her again about the nightmare when she woke up (which she undoubtedly would soon) and walked over and sat next to her on the big rock.  After a few minutes of restlessness and distressed noises, she quieted again, and Draco rolled his eyes.  _Dammit,_ he thought, _maybe she won't wake up after all_… 

He had decided to wait a few more minutes before leaving when she moaned pitifully again.  A moment later, he felt a distant twinge in his back- almost like it wasn't his pain, or it had happened a long time ago, and Ginny shrieked "NO!!" and sat up so fast he barely got out of the way in time.  She looked at him, wild-eyed with the fear of the dream still raging through her, and buckled in on herself, sobbing and shaking like a leaf.  His arms automatically reached out to gather her in, and she didn't resist as he cradled her gently, stroking her hair to soothe her. _Just like Mother's nightmare's,_ he thought as her shudders slowly calmed; _she just needs someone to hold her afterwards_.  They sat together like that for several minutes; even after her tears slowed to a trickle, then nothing, she showed no inclination to move.  

Draco looked down at Ginny's head leaning against his chest.  He had thought she was at least 5'7", which should have put her head at his chin, as he was 6'2".  He realized, when he thought about it, that she was all legs; this made her torso proportionately a lot shorter than his.  Her hair, which was usually in a long, loose braid, was left down today.  It flowed down her back in large, soft waves and curls, gleaming in the last light of the setting sun and ending just above her hips.  _Like in my dream,_ he thought absently.  

When Draco looked at her face, he noticed wryly that she had fallen asleep again.  He gave a soft half-laugh, half-sigh and gathered her in his arms to take inside, when around the corner came Harry and Hermione, clearly looking for Ginny.

"Malfoy!" Harry barked, "What are you doing with her?"

In Draco's arms, Ginny stirred; apparently Harry's shouting had woken her.  She muttered something incoherently as he laid her back down on the rock, gave Potter and Granger a glare, and stalked off.

As Ginny sat up, rubbing her eyes and yawning, Harry and Hermione ran over.  "Gin, are you okay?" Harry asked worriedly.  "Malfoy didn't do anything to you, did he?"

Ginny stared at him for a moment.  _Malfoy… that's right, he was there when I woke up the first time.  What's his deal?_  "I'm fine, Harry, don't worry."

"What was Malfoy doing, anyway?  He looked like he was picking you up or something."

She flushed slightly and answered, "I fell asleep on the rock, and I had a bad dream.  I guess Malfoy came along right when I woke up… It was a really bad dream, so when I started crying-" she reddened in embarrassment again- "he just- held me, I guess."  She frowned thoughtfully.  "I think it was almost an automatic reaction for him- he just… knew what to do to calm me down, I guess." She smiled slightly.  "I fell asleep again."

Harry looked baffled.  "But- it's- it's _Malfoy!"_ he sputtered.  "Why was he being… nice?"

Hermione kept silent, a sharp, thoughtful expression on her face.  _Again, Malfoy surprises us… what _is_ going on with him?_

~*~ Hehe, wouldn't YOU like to know!  Review please, it makes me want to write more!! ~*~


	5. Chapter 4

A/N- Ab fab reviewers: lipstickandbruises, (that was one of my fave parts to write too ^_^) SiamesePG007, (you shall soon find out!) MidnightMuse, (*sqee* THANK YOU!! XD) Serepidia, (doesn't she though? And thanks!!) and Star Dust (that's seriously one of the best compliments I could get. Thanks so much!).  You guys all made my days!! ^_^

The transfiguration from slipper to chair is a little snippet from Anna at the Société de Femmes Dangereuses again.  Read her stuff, it's fabulous!

BUT anyways! Enough of my ramblings, here's the next installment!

Chapter 4 

As Ginny was falling asleep later that night, she wondered why that nightmare kept coming back… it was that dream that had made her sleep so poorly the night before she fell down the stairs, and she had had it twice since then as well.  She shrugged mentally as she yawned and drifted closer to oblivion…

_* Ginny found herself wandering through a foggy field…*_

*   *   *

Pansy Parkinson was absolutely beside herself with anger.  She had seen Draco holding that- that _Weasley_ yesterday, sitting by the lake!  And she had heard him tell Blaise that he had "had that damn dream again" last night.  _Why won't she stay away from him??_ she thought furiously.  _Drakie must not have seen all her embarrassing bad luck the other day… I'll have to think of something really drastic to get her to GO AWAY!_

As she contemplated her revenge and plotted against Ginny, a slow, cruel smile crept across her face.

*   *   *

Draco was thoroughly annoyed with himself.  He had had that stupid dream again nearly every night since seeing Ginny by the lake.  Since this made his sleep restless and hard to come by, he had been growing steadily more irritable.  He tried to soothe his frustrations by taking them out on whoever was nearby- unfortunately, that someone was the youngest Weasley more times than he'd like to admit.  He knew, in the back of his mind, that this definitely wasn't helping his case with her- but he just couldn't help it!  Every time he saw the annoying redhead, his mind automatically flashed back to that dream-

**The woman on the back of the flame-colored alicorn was the most beautiful he had ever seen, with a tumble of scarlet curls reaching past her tiny waist, a body any man would drool over, and an oval face of absolutely heart-stopping loveliness.  As he sat behind her on the back of the flame-colored alicorn, she reached up and pulled his face down for a kiss of pure fire…** 

Dammit!

*   *   *

Over the next week, Ginny grew more and more frustrated with herself.  Why in Merlin's name was she _still_ dreaming about that arrogant Slytherin prick?

She had been trying as hard as she could to avoid him, for a number of reasons.  For one thing, every time she saw his stormy gray eyes she invariably remembered the passionate kiss in her dreams.  For another, ever since she had woken up on the rock in his arms, he had been crueler and snarkier than she had ever seen him- before, she had merely been a rather faceless Weasley to him, whereas now he went out of his way to taunt her and insult her.  

In the halls between Charms and Potions, she always saw him on his way out of McGonnagal's classroom across the hall

"What's the matter, Weasel?" he sneered one day when she tripped over someone's outstretched foot.  "Those old hand-me-down shoes of yours making you clumsier than usual?"  The surrounding Slytherins had cackled madly.  "Oh wait, I forgot- you're a common Mudblood-lover.  Grace doesn't come into play with your sort."  And he had stalked down the hall as she held back tears, fiercely biting her lip.  Pansy Parkinson had sent an extra-smug smirk her way as she passed by.  

The same kind of thing had gone on day after day, until she was ready to scream.  Add in the fact that she woke up two and three times a night from that damn dream, and took at least an hour to get back to sleep each time, and she was visibly on the edge of a breakdown by Thursday, September 22nd, one week after she had been released from hospital wing.  

Ginny had been having absolutely horrible luck all week.  When she woke up on Friday, panting and shaking from another nightmare, she looked over at her clock and groaned in misery.  The stupid thing was stopped!  She had no idea what time it might be, but she had a sinking feeling that she was already late to her first class, as her dorm-mates were already gone.  

She bit her lip, trying to hold back the tears threatening to overflow from her long-lashed hazel eyes, but a traitorous droplet spilled down her cheek, and she gave up and sobbed into her pillow for a good half an hour before, exhausted, she fell into a light doze.  

She woke up a while later and decided that she needed a sanity day.  She wasn't behind at all in any of her classes- she was actually ahead in Transfiguration and Potions, for a wonder.  She briskly dried her eyes on the soft sheets and threw the covers and her bed drapes back.  Bright sunlight greeted her eyes, and she noticed how warm it was in the room.  Moving over to the window, she glanced out and saw a few people dashing to their next classes with their sleeves rolled up, sweating profusely.  

Ginny smiled.  If it was a true Indian Summer day, then she knew exactly the spot she wanted to be…

The tired Gryffindor gathered a few things, threw them into a bag, and set out for the lake.

*   *   *

Draco sat in Charms just after lunch and gazed out the window longingly.  It had to be at least 85 degrees out there, possibly 90… (A/N- I'm American, so I'm using our measuring system cuz I don't know the metric system well enough to use it without annoying myself in this story)

_Ten more minutes,_ he thought as he looked at the clock, then back at the slipper he was supposed to be transfiguring into a stool.  He set to with renewed determination- he had next period free, and he was damned if he'd spend it inside when he could be at the lake!

*   *   *

Ginny sighed in satisfaction.  She had spent the past hour swimming at her special secluded spot by the lake.  It was a small cove with a white sandy beach; for some reason the waters were always warmer right there, and since the lake had had all summer to warm up, it was absolutely perfect- just cool enough to be refreshing instead of chilly.  

She sat on her towel, brushing her hair dreamily and staring out at the lake; after a minute she heard some quiet crackling of the underbrush by the path, and figured it to be a deer or something.

*   *   *

Draco stumbled on a branch that lay by the path to the little cove by the lake.  As he rounded a few trees and came out onto the beach, he stopped in his tracks and stared blankly at the sight before him, his jaw feeling rather unhinged.

Ginny Weasley sat on a blanket on the beach, slowly brushing her long, _long_ hair.  It was dripping wet, and as she was covered in little water droplets, he supposed vaguely that she had just gotten out of the water.  The water on her skin only served to draw his attention to its creamy flawlessness- and he certainly could see a lot of it.

She was wearing a Muggle-designed bikini that did more to accentuate her smooth curves than hide anything.  The shimmery, emerald fabric contrasted sharply with her pale skin, and the vibrant color brought out the green in her lovely, wide-spaced eyes.

Draco must've stood like that for a good three solid minutes, staring at the exquisite flame-haired girl in front of him.  He gulped convulsively as she shook her hair back (making some very interesting portions of her anatomy jiggle enticingly) and gracefully rose to her feet

Ginny gasped as she turned and saw Draco Malfoy standing stock-still on the edge of the beach.  "W-what are you doing here?" she demanded, cursing the traitorous crack in her voice.  She didn't think she could take his sneers and insults without breaking down in front of him.

Draco swallowed again, trying to moisten a suddenly dry throat, and walked slowly towards her.  She started to back away, but stopped, caught by the hypnotic intensity of his silvery-gray eyes.  He halted not six inches from her and reached out an oddly gentle hand to cradle her face, his thumb caressing her cheekbone.  He tipped her face up and brought his lips to hers in a tender kiss.

Ginny gasped, but found herself responding to his touch eagerly despite herself.  As he slipped one hand to her waist and the other into her hair, she slowly slid her hands up his arms and around his neck.  Groaning almost inaudibly, he deepened the kiss, flicking his tongue lightly along her lip.  She whimpered and opened her mouth just enough to admit his probing tongue.

After a moment, he drew back just enough to rest his forehead on hers.  He smiled as he noticed her ragged breathing, and brushed his lips on hers again briefly before murmuring absently, "Cherries…"

She giggled at him, then drew him close again for another kiss.  Suddenly her brain seemed to come out of the frozen shock he had placed it in.  This was _Draco Malfoy_ who was snogging her so fervently- the same one who had been tormenting her for the past week.  She pulled back with a slight gasp.  "What… why…" she stuttered as she backed away slightly.

He stared at her hungrily for a moment, his eyes storm-gray with passion.  The brief interlude was abruptly interrupted by a loud crashing through the nearby underbrush, and the pair jumped apart, Draco instinctively moving slightly in front of Ginny to screen her from whatever was coming towards them.  

But when they saw what burst out of the trees, both stared in absolute shock for a long moment.

Ginny slowly stepped around Draco, towards the tall animal in front of her.  She approached it slowly, hardly believing her eyes, then, trembling, held out her hand for it to sniff.  The majestic creature stared at her, then nudged her hand and let out a low nicker.

Draco thought his eyes couldn't possibly get any rounder, but they managed to nearly pop out of his head when he saw Ginny throw her arms around the tall stallion's neck.

"Aestus…" she breathed.

A/N- BWAHAHAHA!!! Cliffhangers galore, folks, along with lots of G/D snogging goodness!! *stifles chortling* sorry.  Anyway, my apologies that this is so short, but it's quarter to two in the morning.  I need bed.

In any case!  Leetle question for my lovely readers.  What should Pansy do to Ginny next?  She's definitely a psycho stalker type in this fic, and since I'm- well, not, I don't have all that many good ideas for crazy creepy stuff for her to do.  

A/N 2- Chapter 8's finally all written!! Now for 9!!

Suggestions?  Comments?  Anything?? REVIEW AND TELL ME!! 

See? Push da **button!**

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	6. Chapter 5

YAY!!! People are FINALLY reviewing!!! Thanks loads and loads to:

MidnightMuse (Bwahahaha…) Star Dust (You're actually pretty close to what I'm gonna do… you go girl!) eegurl (Teehee ^_^) SiamesePG007 (::snicker:: I like that one…) and Keita twice (that was interesting… we're just too lazy to change ^_^ and where the heck do you live? I'm near enough to the shore that 87 is definitely considered fairly warm- I thought Canadia was cooler than CT!  Guess I was wrong. Oh well.).  Oh, and Keita brought up a good point- 75 or 80 really isn't that hot out- I was thinking more like 85 or 90.  That makes more sense.  So yeah, I'm totally fixing that. 

Introducing a few new people near the end of the chapter; Amara Singer, Katie Flagstaff, and Sarah Bones are my creations, the rest are minor characters you might remember from various books.  So yeah, on with the story!  

Chapter 5

As Draco looked on in shock, the red alicorn nuzzled Ginny's shoulder gently and nickered softly.  Ginny smiled and released him, stepping back and looking at Draco.  She frowned, confused, as she took in his absolutely white face and trembling hands as he slowly pointed at Aestus.

"How-"  Here his voice cracked with strain, and he tried again.  "Where did that alicorn come from?"

Ginny's eyes widened.  "How did you know what he is?" she demanded, paling nearly as much as Draco.  "I don't even know how I know, how the hell do you?"

Draco swallowed and closed his eyes for a moment as what little color there had been slowly came back to his white cheeks.  "I-" he cleared his throat and tried again.  "I need to talk to you, Weasley."

"About what?" she asked mistrustfully.

He took another step towards her, and she backed up nervously.  "I know you should have class now- you skipped."

"So?" she threw back.  "I've seen you skip before, what's the big deal?"

He took a closer look at her.  Under the defiance, and a touch of fear, he saw circles under her eyes.  He remembered the nightmares he had seen her having, and figured he might as well see if his suspicions had been correct.

"Have you been having… odd dreams lately?" he asked after a moment.  He knew he had hit the mark when he saw her stiffen slightly.  "Though so."

"Why?  How?" she half-whispered.  He flushed slightly and averted his gaze from hers.  She stared in astonishment.  "You too?" she asked, shocked.

He nodded, pink-faced.  "Was… I know this sounds odd, but… was I in your dream?"  This time it was her turn to turn red, and he grinned at her discomfort.  

The moment was interrupted when Aestus's ears pricked up, and he reared high in the air, pawing madly and sounding a shrill clarion call.  Ginny and Draco backed away nervously from the excited, prancing stallion, then whirled as an answering neigh reached their ears from above.  Draco's eyes widened as he saw what was unmistakably another alicorn circling above them, coming lower to land at last on the beach a few yards away.  

The newcomer was a tall, finely-boned mare; her body was a pale gold, her wings a shade or two darker, with a pure white mane and tail.  Her pearly, iridescent horn gleamed in the bright afternoon light, and she shone as she tossed her head when Aestus walked over and seemed to greet her joyfully.  

Draco stood for a long moment, his mind absolutely whirling; in the midst of the chaos, a single name surfaced from the depths of his memories.  

"Aurea," he murmured; the name was a derivative of the Latin word _aureus,_ golden.  Every witch or wizard needed a basic understanding of the Latin language; it was the language of sorcery, the basis of many of their incantations.  _Golden one,_ he thought bemusedly, _it certainly fits._  

He suddenly glanced over at Ginny, who had appeared beside him.  She looked up at him and quietly asked, "Did you just know her name without knowing why?"  

Draco swallowed and nodded carefully.  "How did you know?" he half-whispered.  She just looked at him with those great hazel eyes of hers, then sighed and returned her gaze to the now-calm alicorns.  Draco gave a slight sigh and slowly walked up to the pale mare.  He held his hand out as Ginny had done; Aurea sniffed his hand, then nudged it with her nose and nickered as Aestus had.  A smile tugged at Draco lips as he stepped forward to stroke the lovely mare's neck and scratch her behind the ears, which she clearly adored.  

Ginny caught her breath at Draco's expression; with such a peaceful, _happy_ look on his face, he was unbelievably attractive- _just like my dream,_ she thought in the back of her mind.  She dismissed the thought and approached the trio, smiling widely as Aestus stepped forward to meet her and nudge her shoulder again.  She turned to look at Draco just as he did the same.

"You up for it?" she asked mischievously.  Draco just grinned in response and vaulted onto the mare's back, who then threw her head up in excitement.  Ginny laughed and did the same- or at least tried to; Aestus was at least 17 and a half hands high, possibly more, so this was more difficult than it seemed. (A/N- horses are measured in "hands"- one hand is 4 inches, therefore 17 ½ hands= 5'10".  ^_^ yes, I am a horse nut.)  Draco laughed at her attempts, then said, "Wingardium Leviosa!" and _swished_ and _flicked_ her onto Aestus's back.  Ginny stuck her tongue out at him and grinned in excitement as the tall alicorns pranced beneath them.

Draco placed a hand on Aurea's neck and urged her forward by squeezing lightly with his calves.  The golden mare eagerly trotted where he directed her- to the edge of the water where the trees came down to the shore.  Ginny encouraged Aestus to follow the other pair, and they rounded the trees to look upon a long, flat stretch of grassy lakeshore.  

Draco looked back at Ginny, daring her with his eyes to do what they both knew they could.  Ginny just grinned back and tapped Aestus lightly on the shoulder.  The spirited stallion eagerly sprang forward into a gallop, Aurea close behind him.  When the racing alicorns had run about fifty yards, Aestus's wings snapped open and flapped hard to get him airborne, Aurea doing the same a moment later.  Ginny and Draco instinctively hunched over their mounts' necks, making as small a obstacle for the wind as possible.  

As the alicorns soared higher into the air, Ginny started laughing from sheer exhilaration.  Draco heard her; it was joyful, infectious.  He looked over at her, his heart contracting at the sight of her face.  _She just lights up when she smiles,_ he thought, hard put not to laugh himself.  The girl was practically glowing now; she sat up, gripped Aestus firmly with her legs, and spread her arms wide, letting out a shriek of absolute joy-

Which promptly turned into a cry of fear when Aestus and Aurea were buffeted by a strong gust of wind- there had been faint, playful breezes down by the shore, but since they were by now a hundred yards in the air, the winds had grown to at least 20 mile an hour gusts.  Draco's head whipped around as he saw her clutch at her steed's mane in terror, only still aloft by that grip; the gust that had jolted Draco had thrown her off Aestus's back, and she had grabbed his mane as her only chance.

"Ginny!" he shouted, and somehow directed Aurea up to where Aestus was flying, obviously frightened for Ginny.  The wind was not cooperating with their efforts- separate gusts drove the red alicorn higher and the gold mare farther back.  They were now separated by about 25 yards, and he watched in agony as Ginny's hands seemed to slip farther down her mount's mane.  Aurea sensed his urgency, and began to drive herself closer to the dangling girl with great thrusts of her feathered wings, until they were a few feet below her.

Ginny moaned in terror as she felt herself slip a little more.  Her heart leapt when she heard Draco from below her.  "Ginny!" he called, "I'm right underneath you; I'm going to try and go a little higher, but I can catch you if you fall, don't worry."

_Don't worry?!?_ she thought frantically.  _Let's see if you can dangle three hundred and some-odd feet in the air and not worry!_

Just then she felt her numbing fingers losing their last grip on Aestus's mane.  "NO!" she screamed, but in vain; the long hairs slipped from her grasp and she plummeted-

The six feet into Draco's arms.  She grabbed onto him, shaking in fear and adrenaline rush.  He grunted as the impact drove him slightly off balance, then felt Aurea shift herself under him to steady him.  He brought Ginny's nearest leg over his mount's back so that she straddled her, facing him.  The terrified redhead buried her face in his shoulder as he urged Aurea earthward, the chastened Aestus in tow.

*   *   *

Hagrid cursed fluently as he tracked the loose alicorns through the forest.  "Damn flighty beasts," he muttered to himself.  He followed the prints of the male onto the beach, then spotted a blue beach towel and bag.  He frowned in concern- could the animal have chased the kid off? No, he saw footprints- small, probably female- leading directly to where the big male had halted a moment.  He spotted another set of hoof-prints a few feet away; apparently the female had found him and landed.  His brow furrowed again as he saw another, larger set of human footprints approach the mare's tracks, then disappear.

"Could they have…?" he mumbled.  "Naw," he said, dismissing the idea from his head.  There was no way those two skittish creatures would have let two kids on their backs… was there? 

He followed both sets of hoof-prints to where they stretched into a gallop across the grass.  He smiled proudly at the length of stride of the pair- he had certainly found two fine specimens!

He came to the unhappy conclusion that the two alicorns had taken flight here.  Would he ever be able to find them?

He stood a moment, shaking his head, when from behind him came the sound of large wings flapping.  He whirled and blanched as he saw Draco Malfoy land, seated on the back of the gold female, Ginny Weasley in his arms.

"What do you think yer doin', Malfoy?" he bellowed as the red male landed beside the other.  Ginny stirred in Draco's arms, and turned her pale, set face to Hagrid.

"It's all right, Hagrid," she said weakly.  "He saved my life."

"Well what'n blue blazes where ye doin' on that alicorn's back, then?" he demanded, correctly guessing what Draco had saved her from.  She flushed slightly, but said nothing as she, then Draco dismounted.  The blonde boy stayed by the mare's head as Ginny walked over to the stallion and soothed his nervous prancing with quiet words and soft touches.  

Hagrid's eyes widened respectfully as he saw her quickly calm the beast.  "How in the world did ye get him ta let ye mount?" he asked in a more normal (for Hagrid) tone of voice.  "The ruddy mare wouldn' even let me near 'er, and that blasted stallion almos' gave me a good swift kick in the ribs."

Ginny stared at this revelation.  "_You_ couldn't control them?" she asked; the huge grounds-keeper simply shook his shaggy head in answer.  _Whoa,_ Ginny thought, _how does _that_ work?_  "Umm, I… don't really know, I suppose," she replied, glancing at Draco.  He shook his head as well; he had even less of an idea than she did.  

Hagrid studied the pair for a moment, then shook his head again.  "Well, what do ye do?" he asked rhetorically, his black eyes crinkling at the corners.  "Can ye at least help me get 'em under control fer now?  And maybe when I have class with 'em?"  He quickly added, "Don't worry, I'm only usin' 'em fer sixth and seventh year classes, and I'd give ye extra credit fer helping- say thirty house points apiece if ye help 'till the end of the semester?" he ended hopefully.  

Ginny and Draco glanced at each other and turned back to him.  "I think we'd both have to be in each class," Ginny said.  "I know I can handle Ae- this guy-" she didn't know how Hagrid would react to her already naming him- "but I don't know about the mare."

Draco quickly concurred.  "Same here, I think.  I don't know if the stallion would listen to me like he does to Ginny."  Hagrid looked at him oddly for a moment, and he realized, cursing mentally, that he had just called her Ginny, rather than Weasley- what would the big oaf say to that?

Hagrid just turned his attention back to the both of them.  "If ye can arrange it so ye can both be there, that'd help greatly, but if ye can't, I can always use just one fer the lesson."  He frowned.  "Though what I'm gonna do with th' others is beyond me…"

"How many did you get?" Ginny asked curiously.  Hagrid looked at her sheepishly a moment then scratched the back of his neck and said, "Eight.  The chap I bought 'em from sold me the whole herd- fer a real bargain, considerin' they're so rare!"  He smiled at this, but his brow furrowed again as he tried to think of something to do with the six other animals.

Ginny cleared her throat.  "You might want to check and see if any other students can handle them," she suggested.  "There is a good chance that you'll be able to find at least one in most classes.  

Hagrid smiled at her.  "Great idea, Gin!" he exclaimed.  "Any ideas who might be able to do it?"

Ginny thought a moment, then remembered her dream.  "Harry, Ron, and Hermione might- possibly…" she said slowly.

"Try Blaise Zabini," Draco suggested.  

Hagrid brightened again.  "True, he always did do well with animals- loved those flyin' horses Olympe brought over that time."  He smiled at the two of them.  "Now," he continued, "Got any ideas fer names?  We can' go 'round callin' 'em Horsie or somethin' like that."

Ginny giggled, then replied, "He's Aestus."  When Hagrid looked at her quizzically, she flushed slightly and said, "I had a dream, and he was in it- his name was Aestus there, so I figured, why not?  It means Flame of passion," she added, blushing slightly, "Or something like that."

Hagrid shrugged and turned to Draco.  "What about you?" he asked.

Draco kept his eyes on his mare.  "Aurea," he answered softly.  "Golden One."

*   *   *

Over the next week or so, Hagrid cautiously introduced his sixth and seventh year classes to the herd of alicorns.  Ron and Hermione bonded with another, younger male-female pair, this time with the mare, a gentle chestnut-brown lady, going to Hermione, and the blood-bay stallion taking to Ron.  Harry, nervous at first, had finally smiled and picked a black male with startlingly green eyes (A/N: yeah, kinda cheesy I know, but whatever, I feel like it ^_^).  As Draco had figured, Blaise had immediately singled out a young dapple-gray stallion with sparkling amber eyes.

When Ginny went to the Ravenclaw-Hufflepuff class of sixth years, she was delighted to see two of her best friends find alicorn mounts.  Amara Singer, a sweet, Muggle-born Ravenclaw, had shyly stepped forward to be greeted by a small mare the color of a brand new penny; Katie Flagstaff, a bubbly brown-haired Ravenclaw, had delightedly greeted a dark brown mare who had pranced up to her excitedly.  (A/N- explanations in A/N at end)

Hagrid was absolutely delighted that all of the alicorns had found "friends" as he called them; he had been afraid that there would be some left that no one could control.  Once the alicorns had chosen whoever they would from each class, he began to tell them about the beautiful creatures.

"Alicorns're related te flyin' horses and unicorns, as ye can see by the horn and the wings.  They're extremely rare," here he grinned, "so it's bloody lucky I could find this many.  In order to be tamed, each alicorn has te bond with a specific person; if it doesn't find someone te bond with, it absolutely refuses te be controlled and mos' likely tries te escape.  No one really knows why they pick whoever they do, but there ye have it."  There was also plenty of information on the care and feeding of the animals, breeding, known history, and many other things.

After the last class of the day, Ginny and Draco would head down to Hagrid's hut and work on designing tack for the alicorns; Ginny was not in any way eager to relive her terrifying experience, and no one wanted any of the others to get hurt.  Eventually, they came up with a basic idea:

The "saddles" (a loose term, since they resembled them only superficially) were basically soft leather pads to cushion the rider's backside from the rather prominent backbone of his or her mount- Draco had specifically requested that they be comfortable, wincing in remembrance of his soreness for days after he and Ginny's adventure.  The pads had metal stirrups attached so that the rider could keep their seat easier, as well as post when the alicorn was trotting on the ground.  The alicorns also had cloth halters with reins to use as a sort of bridle; there was no bit to go between the teeth, but it wasn't really needed.  The alicorns were almost always very obedient to their riders' wishes, so that all the person had to do was pull gently on the reins and the mount would go whichever way they directed.  

Draco and Ginny grew closer in the weeks that they practiced their riding together; neither spoke about the passionate kiss they had shared, or the dreams that still occurred at least once a week, but they were at least more comfortable around each other.  Indeed, since all of the alicorns were in mated pairs, some of the lucky riders found themselves getting friendlier with people they wouldn't have expected to.

Hagrid wanted all eight people to spend some free time, if they could, working with and getting to know their alicorns.  Only the seventh years had free periods, and since Harry and Ron usually spent theirs flying around the Quidditch pitch, everyone usually stopped by after the last class period.   Amara was slightly disappointed by this; she had been using the time between class and dinner to practice music, which she had refused to give up once she came to Hogwarts.  Since, for some reason, magic tended to send instruments out of tune (and no one wanted to be constantly tuning the piano) McGonnagal had found a small room and woven an incredibly impervious shield that kept out all stray magical energy.  The formidable teacher had had a soft spot for Amara ever since; Ginny rather thought that the woman missed hearing music.  

The four Gryffindors had been rather nervous about Blaise Zabini; after all, he was a Slytherin- and a friend of Draco's.  They kept a close watch on both Slytherin boys, but when they had been perfectly pleasant (for them) Harry and Ron decided to give up and ignore them.  Both Gryffs were extremely wary of Draco in particular, and Ron especially didn't want Ginny anywhere near him, but as Aestus was rather sullen without his pale mate by his side, the boys were forced (oh, horror!) to let Ginny actually use her own judgment about him.

All the while, Pansy- and her Death Eater father- were extremely curious about the youngest Weasley child.  What was so special about her that the lead stallion of the herd had chosen her?

And what could they do to exploit that?

Really long A/N: For all you people who had no idea what I was talking about with some of the alicorn stuff, here ya go (I didn't want to interrupt the flow of the story): 

· Chestnut: reddish brown. Can range from fairly light coppery color (i.e. Amara's mare's color) to pretty close to brown, but more reddish.

· Dapple (dapple gray): lighter spots on the coat.  

· Bay: brown or chestnut-colored body with black mane and tail.  A "blood bay" horse has a reddish body with the usual black mane and tail.  

· The coloring Draco's Aurea has (basically any color body with a white or very light mane and tail) is called palomino- they're kinda rare, and really pretty.

· Any horse can have black or white socks and/or a white blaze, star, snip, or other kind of marking on their face.  Obviously some colors are more likely to have different markings than others, just like people.

· Posting to a trot is half-standing, then sitting back down while the horse trots.  It sounds confusing and kinda stupid the way I put it, but trust me, it's a LOT more comfortable than being bounced around trying to sit a trot.

Told ya I was a horse nut! ^_^

Anyway, sorry the second part of this chapter was so boring, but I needed to put in that info.  This chapter was hard… :-(  


	7. Chapter 6

A/N- ^_^ Yay for wonderful reviewers!

Keita- Now that I think of it, that makes an awful lot of sense, you guys being really far inland and such.  Ya learn something every day! ^_^

Star Dust- Thanks, it's nice to know my dorkiness is appreciated! ^_^ Anyway, you shall know what they plan eventually… when I feel like revealing ::evil cackle:: But yeah, in Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone Blaise Zabini is the last person Sorted.  We don't know if Blaise is male or female, and we never hear about him/her again, so it makes him/her a really versatile character.  All you have to do is make sure Blaise is a Slytherin!

FEEdLestEEx- Thanks!  Though if this isn't fast enough for you, I can't wait till I've caught up with myself.  Nice name, BTW! ^_^

Harmonia- Thanks, glad to know I'm appreciated! :D

kneh13-  teehee. No prob, bob!

Anyway, any lurkers that happen to be hanging about- REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!!  Criticism is good too, any kind of review please!

***WARNING!!!! Spoiler from OotP!! If you haven't read it and don't know who died yet, you might wanna skip the end of this chapter.  Thanks, now on with your regularly scheduled update!***

Chapter 6

The second weekend in October, the weather decided to be most uncooperative to Ginny, Amara and Katie's plans to go riding; the spell of golden-warm days had most emphatically broken.  If you looked out the window, you would think there was a waterfall right outside, complete with a thunderous roar that refused to cease.

Ginny sighed and turned away from the window.  _Now what to do?_  She shrugged and decided to go get breakfast first- hopefully she would see the girls there and they could think of something.

She greeted her Ravenclaw friends with a wave.  "So much for going riding," she said with a wry grin.  "Any ideas for something else to do today?"

Katie, a tall, slim girl with shiny brown hair and huge hazel eyes, shrugged and looked to Amara hopefully.  _Maybe this time…_  

Her fellow Ravenclaw was only about 5'4" and had softly waving red-gold hair and guileless blue eyes.  She bit her lip and replied softly, "Well, I did promise to show you the music room the next time we didn't have anything planned, so I suppose that's an option…"

Ginny and Katie grinned and agreed promptly.  They had been waiting for Amara to get over her self-consciousness about her voice and sing for them for months!  The giggling trio sat down and chattered for a bit over a light breakfast, waiting for mail before heading out.  After a few minutes, a rush of wings overhead announced that their wait was over.  All three girls delightedly accepted letters from various owls.

"Mum says hi," Ginny relayed, smiling at her family's zaniness.  Katie laughed and showed the other two girls a picture her parents had sent of her and her much younger brother playing catch on the front lawn- with a startled-looking puppy.  She assured them that she had had her wand out to levitate the young dog if her brother had missed as he often did.  

Suddenly Amara paled as she read her letter from home.  "What's wrong?" a concerned Ginny asked.  

"Danny's been checked in to the hospital again," she answered, her voice shaking slightly.  _Oh, Danny…_ When her concerned friends asked why, she told them that her longtime Muggle friend had been diagnosed the previous year with leukemia.

"What's that?" Katie nervously asked.

"It's… a kind of disease in your blood," Amara replied absently, scanning the letter again.  "They found it last year, but I thought he had it beaten… I guess it just went into remission," she said sadly.  Danny was her absolute best friend back home, the big brother she never had.  "You wouldn't believe what they can do with medicine now, though.  I'm sure he'll be fine," she said, a little more cheerfully.  The three girls quickly finished their meals and set out for the music room.

*   *   *

"Oh, wow," Ginny said breathlessly.  The room Amara had let them into wasn't all that large, but the ceiling arched quite high overhead, letting sound ring far more than it would have had the room had a normal, flat ceiling.  There were many instruments hung on the walls; guitars, violins, flutes, trumpets, all sorts of things.  There were even a few funny-looking ones Ginny didn't recognize.  In the center of the room there was a beautiful baby grand piano.  Amara walked over to it and sat down.

"So," she asked, smiling nervously, "What should I play?"

"Anything," Ginny said eagerly.  "We just want to hear you!"

Amara laughed and relaxed a bit, then thought a moment and began playing Beethoven's "Für Elise."  This famous song was actually not as hard as it sounded, and was a good warm-up piece for Amara's fingers.  Ginny and Katie listened, entranced, to the lovely flowing melody rippling from under Amara's nimble fingers.  They felt the distinct emotions of each section: first, the peaceful, slow part that anyone could recognize; then, the light cheerfulness of the second section.  The first part came back again, then was followed by a pounding, mournful section.  The main part came back one final time to round out the piece, leaving the delighted audience peaceful and soothed.

Ginny sighed and opened her eyes.  "That was _so_ lovely, 'Mara, you should play for us more often!"  Katie nodded, fervently agreeing.

The shy redhead smiled, pleased that she had gotten such a good reception.  "Thanks, girls.  It means a lot to me."

"So," Katie asked slyly, her eyes twinkling.  "Do we get to hear the famous voice now?"  When the two young witches had gone to visit Amara's Muggle family over the summer, her mother had been constantly after her to sing for the family and guests; Amara had adamantly refused, blushing furiously.

Amara flushed again, then replied, "I suppose so."  She thought a moment, then smiled sadly and started to play again.

After a few bars of a lovely, flowing introduction, she started to sing a gentle, loving tune:

"Oh Danny Boy, the pipes, the pipes are callin'

From glen to glen and down the mountainside

The sun is gone, and all the roses fallin'

It's you, it's you must go and I must bide.

But come ye back when summer's in the meadow

Or when the valley's hushed and white with snow

It's I'll be here in sunshine, or in shadow

Oh Danny Boy, Oh Danny Boy, I miss you so.

And if I come, and all the flow'rs are dyin'

And you are dead, as dead you well may be,

I'll come and find the place where you are lyin'

And kneel, and say an Ave there for thee.

But come ye back when summer's in the meadow

Or when the valley's hushed and white with snow

It's I'll be here in sunshine, or in shadow

Oh Danny Boy, Oh Danny Boy, I love you so."

Her lovely voice rang through the room; rich and smooth, but at the same time light and pleasant, she sang the ancient tune as if her heart were breaking.

When she was finished, a profound silence filled the little room as she wiped away tears from her pale cheeks.  Ginny and Katie just stared at her, stunned, letting their own tears run unchecked down their faces.

Amara finally turned and looked at them.  Her eyes widened as she took in their reactions.  She cleared her throat and they jumped. 

Ginny was the first to recover.  She wiped her face and tried to speak, cleared her throat, and tried again, with better success.  "Wow."  Amara smiled through her tears at her friends as they walked up and gathered her into a three-way hug.  She sobbed quietly into their shoulders for a few minutes as they held her, telling her without words that should she ever need them, they would always be there.

*   *   *

It stayed rainy until Wednesday, so none of the riders could take out their mounts until then.  Thankfully, Wednesday was another one of the crisp, sunny days that alicorns and people alike loved.

The early part of the week was normal, in the routine they had all set up; go to class all day, go riding for the hour between class and dinner, eat, and do whatever until bed.

For Amara, everything changed on Thursday.  

*   *   *

At breakfast, the mail came as usual; Ginny was commenting rather acidly to the Trio about Fred and George's latest product at "Weasley's Wizard Wheezes" when she suddenly felt compelled to look over to the Ravenclaw table.

Amara sat white-faced in shock, staring fixedly at the letter in front of her.  She began to shake, and suddenly bolted from her seat before the tears could start pouring down her face.  Ginny gasped and went after her, with no explanation to Ron, who had demanded to know where she was going.

"Let her be, Ron," Hermione commanded.  "Something's wrong with her friend, she needs to be with her."

Ginny was joined by Katie as they dashed down the hall after the crying girl.  "Amara!  Wait!" she gasped.  The distraught young witch did not stop, but instead ran up to the Ravenclaw tower and into her bedroom that she shared with Katie.  As her panting friends reached the entrance to the common room, Katie said the password ("Avianis!") and they rushed after Amara.

When they finally ran into the room, they found Amara curled in a ball on her bed, wracked with tearing sobs that shook her petite body violently.  Ginny and Katie walked up to her and sat down on either side of her.  "Mara, what happened?" Katie asked; there was no answer but more cries of grief.  Ginny picked up the letter Amara had thrown on the bed and read it; her eyes widened and she put her hand to her mouth in disbelief.  "Oh, no," she breathed, eyes filling with tears.

"What?  What happened?" Katie asked frantically.  Ginny wordlessly handed her the letter.

Danny was dead.

Katie couldn't believe her eyes; hadn't he just been checked into the hospital?  But as she read on, she saw that he had hemorrhaged while in the shower, and died almost immediately.  Both fifth-years comforted their grieving friend as best they could, rubbing her back and murmuring soothing things to her as she cried herself to sleep.

*   *   *

Amara didn't go to class on Friday; she stayed in her room and didn't even come out to eat until Saturday afternoon, when she avoided her friends and went straight to the paddock outside Hagrid's hut.

"Hi, Dancer," she sighed, scratching the copper mare behind the ears.  She grabbed her saddle, halter, and grooming tools from the tack box nearby, put everything on the fence rail, and brought the alicorn outside.  She told her all about Danny, and how much she missed him, as she brushed the dust and mud from her coat and cleaned her hooves.  

Finally ready, Amara saddled and bridled Dancer and rode out into the nearby forest.  After riding about ten minutes, she came to her favorite clearing and they halted.  Amara dismounted and walked over to the large rock in the center of the clearing; it was nice and flat on top, perfect for sitting on and sunbathing.  She sat down and let the roiling mass of emotions within her slowly sort themselves out.  Eventually, she swallowed down the painful lump in her throat and began to sing.

*   *   *

As Harry and Onyx wandered among the trees by the lake, he heard something in the distance- a haunting melody… who could be singing?

He followed the sound deeper into the woods; this wasn't really the Forbidden Forest, nothing really came this far out.  This was just a normal forest by the lake.  As Harry went deeper, he still couldn't quite make out the words- maybe she was facing away from him…?

He came to the edge of a small clearing; he could hear the song coming quite clearly now.  In the middle of the tiny meadow sat Ginny's friend Amara, her hair shimmering red-gold in the sunlight.  He could only see a little of her face, but he could hear the words clearly now:

You're in the arms of the angel/ Far away from here/ In this dark cold hotel room/ And the endlessness that you feel/ You are born from the wreckage/ Of your silent reverie/ You're in the arms of the angel/ May you find some comfort here. 

Harry stood, spellbound, as Amara's pure voice rose and fell, rang through the clear light and throbbed with emotion.  The slender girl obviously had no idea anyone except her beloved alicorn was listening; Harry figured no one else even knew where she was.

As he listened to the heartbreakingly lovely song, he was unwillingly reminded of the family and friends he had lost; his parents and Cedric were, indeed, in the arms of the angels right now.  He could feel the sorrow rising from the girl in waves, and his own eyes stung and burned as he watched her sing.

When the last clear note had faded into the forest, Harry stood with two lonely tears running down his cheeks; he sniffed automatically and Amara whirled to face him, her eyes wide and bright with alarm.  Quick as a flash, she was on her alicorn and bolting through the trees away from him.

"Wait!" Harry cried.  "I didn't mean to scare you… bugger," he muttered as he nudged Onyx after the chestnut mare and her rider.

Amara and Dancer dodged through the trees as long as they could, but they finally burst into a tiny pocket-meadow at least a mile away from where they had been.  The underbrush all around the edge was far too thick for Dancer to plow through, and the meadow was only a few yards wide; there was no way they could get away.

Harry finally caught up with them.  "Are you alright?" he asked, concern clear in his eyes; those eyes widened when he saw Amara crumple, sobbing, on the back of her alicorn.  He hurriedly dismounted, then walked over and gently pulled her off her mount.  _She's so tiny,_ he thought absently; though still wiry, he had grown to a couple inches shy of six feet, so Amara's slim 5'4" was quite a difference.  He sat down with the weeping girl cradled in his arms, and held her close as she cried herself out.  He remembered times when he had so desperately wanted someone to hold him, but had held back from embarrassment; he was sure that this was what she needed more than anything right now.  

Harry tried to remember if Ginny had told him what had happened on Thursday, but then realized with a wince that he hadn't seen Ginny since then.  He had no idea why she was crying so hard, but it must have been absolutely awful…

After several minutes, Amara's tears finally ran out.  She stayed folded in Harry's arms for another few minutes until even her breathing was back to normal.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Harry asked quietly.  He had felt awful while telling Dumbledore about Cedric's death, but it had been such a relief afterwards.  Hopefully it would help her as much.

Amara just sniffed as she collected her thoughts.

"His name was Danny."

Harry and Amara leaned back against the warm bulk of Onyx, who had laid down behind them (forming a quite comfortable backrest).  It was nearly dark; they had talked for hours.  First, Amara had told him all about Danny.  He had been her closest friend since she could talk, and was the only Muggle besides her parents to know she went to Hogwarts.  She told him all about the games they had played, how they had grown even closer during the summers home; then, holding back tears, she related how his doctor had discovered that he had leukemia.  She relived the pain and worry of the previous year, when he had been fighting so hard to live; the relief when he had told her he was all right again; then she had broken down and cried again when she told him how he died.  

After drying her tears a second time, Harry opened up to her as well; he told her about growing up with the Dursleys, especially Dudley, and about when he got his Hogwarts letter.  He talked about his parents, what he had learned about them from Sirius, Hagrid, Professor Lupin, and the memories he had seen from Snape.  He related the whole story of his fourth year, his crush on Cho, his jealousy of Cedric, even the battle with Voldemort.  Finally, he told her of his lingering grief over Sirius's death at the end of his fifth year, and the guilt he still felt.  What if he hadn't run off?  What if he had just… 

When both of them were talked out, they remained sitting together, Harry's arm around her, her head on his shoulders.  _He's really sweet,_ Amara thought to herself.  _I can see why Ginny had that crush on him for so long._

Harry looked up at the sky; when he saw stars beginning to peek out, he swore softly.  "We should probably be getting back," he said reluctantly.  Amara sighed, but stood up and gave him a hand up.  

"I wish we could stay longer," she said wistfully.  Looking at her in the moonlight, Harry's heart lurched a moment; then he shook himself.  _What are you doing, she's one of Ginny's friends!  Not for you!_ he told himself sternly.  The young students mounted up, and rode back to school together, glancing at each other in the moonlight.

A/N- I know, no Draco; he's taking a little vacation while I fill in details about Amara and Katie.  But Harry's got some interest!  Side note- Katie is heavily based on my bestest bud, Katie Morrisey.  Luv u Flag!

On a different note, Danny's story is actually not made up; there was a senior violin performance major at my school who died November 20th from leukemia.  I didn't know him, but everyone who did misses him more than words can say; he was sweet, hardworking, and extremely talented, and he didn't deserve to die as young as he did.  This chapter is dedicated to Justin Campbeau: I'm sorry I never knew you, and I wish I had.  Your memory lives on in all your friends and brothers.


	8. Chapter 7

A/N- Yay, people like me!! XD so thanks to these spiffing folks:

Trancos (I loff your story!! Write more!! :D thanks so much for the reviews!) Tupper a million times (wow, serious reviewer here! Thanks for putting all that time in!) Aelys (so glad you like!) Star Dust (dude, longest review award- you rock!) Midnight Muse (^_^ yay! Tears are good! Teeheehee…) and fEEdLestEEx (Action coming, just you wait!).  You guys make my day!  

Random note- I saw the always-spiffy Jodie over break, and guess what?? SHE DREW ME A DRACO!!! XD He is SO hott! As soon as I can get it on a site of some sort I'll put in the URL for the pic.

Anyway, on with the story!

Chapter 7

Over the next several weeks, Amara slowly recovered from Danny's death.  She was still sad, and not as inclined to smile as she had been, but she no longer looked quite so pale and wan.  Ginny was becoming convinced it was at least partially due to Harry's growing friendship with her; the handsome young man had made a point of being around her more often, and when Amara seemed ready to break down, it was Harry as often as Katie and Ginny that held and comforted her while she cried.  

One day during breakfast, Amara got a small package from home.  When she opened it, her eyes widened, then filled with tears, though she wore a sad little half-smile.  She sniffed and wiped her eyes, then showed it to Katie, who was sitting next to her; the other girl seemed slightly startled, to Ginny's concerned gaze, but she looked up and waved Ginny over.

When she got to the Ravenclaw table, she noticed that the package was a piece of sheet music.  "What's that?" she asked curiously.

Amara smiled through her tears again and handed her the music; it was a four-part arrangement of "Danny Boy" for women's' voices.  "It was Danny's favorite one- the girls' choir at his school did it at a concert once and he couldn't stop raving about it."  She chuckled a little and wiped her eyes again.  "His mum sent it- she figured I'd like a copy 'just to see what he was babbling about.'" Ginny and Katie smiled back at her- it was good to see her remembering the good times.  

Amara narrowed her eyes for a second, thinking fast.  "What is it?" Katie asked.  She didn't answer for a second, then smiled again and shook her head.  

"Do you want to go riding after class?" she suggested, changing the subject.  Her friends' eyes lit up as they nodded eagerly; they were forming extremely close bonds with their mounts, and they always relished a chance to spend time with them.  As the three chattering young women walked out of the Great Hall, they did not go unwatched…

*   *   *

That afternoon, Draco sighed contentedly as he brushed Aurea's golden sides.  _I can't remember being this… I don't know, non-stressed, in so long._  His quiet smile slipped from his face as he remembered.  _Since Mum died._

Ever since Draco had been a small child, his mother had been the only one to love him unconditionally; she had protected him from his father's rages, sometimes at risk to herself.  Draco's brows drew together and he unconsciously brushed harder as he thought back to the number of times his mother had had to cast concealment charms before she went out anywhere.  The brush strokes came faster and faster as his eyes began to burn.

When his arms began to ache and tremble, he dropped the brush and leaned against Aurea's neck, crying silently into her shoulder as she nuzzled him gently.  He didn't know how long he stood there, but he started as a hand touched his shoulder suddenly.  He spun quickly to see Ginny Weasley backing up nervously.  

"What are you doing here?" he asked nastily, hurriedly wiping the tears away, trying to make it look like he simply had something in his eyes.  She bit her lip, then stepped forward again, eyes filled with pity.

_No!  Can't let her see me cry!_  He thought, panicked and unwilling to admit it.  "What, Weasley, thought you'd 'comfort' the future Death Eater?  'Turn him to the light?'" he sneered and drew closer to her, towering over her and trying to be as intimidating as he could- which was very.  He'd had practice, after all.  "You've certainly got another thing coming."

The startled girl scowled at him determinedly.  "Draco, I never automatically assumed you would follow in your bloody father's footsteps.  You're trying to intimidate me," _and it's working, _"But I know something's really wrong!"  She stopped and looked up at him, his face white and frozen.  "Tell me," she pleaded softly, taking one of his cold, unresisting hands in both of hers.  "I may not be able to help, but-"

Draco suddenly ripped his hand from Ginny's grasp and whirled, stalking wordlessly out of the dimly lit stable.  

Ginny sighed frustratedly and watched him leave, then went to put Aurea in the paddock with the rest of the herd.  "What in the world is with him?" she murmured quietly to the tall mare.  Aurea just snorted and shook her head until her ears flapped.  Ginny grinned lopsidedly.  "Exactly."

[A/N- WARNING- ANGST AND VIOLENCE DEAD AHEAD!]

As Draco stormed away, he was barely able to keep his burning eyes from filling again.  Starting to lose the hopeless battle, he changed course slightly and sprinted towards the nearby forest.

After a few minutes' run, he broke into a small clearing with a rock in the center.  As he leaned his back against it, he felt himself start to shake uncontrollably and buried his head in his hands to let his lingering grief run its course again.  Images flashed through his head, no matter how hard he tried to make them go away.

*His mother standing surrounded by his father's cronies, white-faced and trembling, trying to hide it-*

*His father sneering in response to its questions.  Yes, my Lord.  I'm not sure… yes, you're right.  That's exactly it.  A cruel smile.  What a marvelous idea, my Lord…*

*Himself, standing apart from the circle but still restricted by it.  What?  What was he saying?*

*Mum-*

*The Circle, shouting curses-*

*Her, screaming-* *His father, laughing insanely-* 

*It, doing something- what? Something- more-*

*Always screaming-*

He flinched, curling up into a little ball of quivering nerves as his memories, imprinted indelibly on his mind, continued in their rampage to the inevitable conclusion…

*Mum, reaching a bloodied out to him as he screamed for her- Father wielding the long knife- a more horrible shriek than the ones before- longer, louder, more agonized-* *Silence-* 

Draco convulsed once as she had done, then relaxed slightly as he toppled over onto his side.  His face felt scalded by the hot tears pouring down in molten rivers, and he pounded the earth beneath him in impotent rage.

*   *   *

"Are you sure?  This is not something to be taken lightly, my dear."  The voice was cold and hard, but velvet smooth.

"Oh, yes, sir," the other answered eagerly.  "It would be quite easy- and wouldn't it make a splendid impression on those fools?"

"It would, indeed," the velvety one mused.  The voice paused, thinking, then spoke again in a very satisfied tone.  "I believe My Lord will very much enjoy your little idea.  We shall have to find something- quite original, though.  After all, we can't have those idiots fixing everything as soon as it happens, now can we?"

*   *   *

On Wednesday, Ginny looked out the window to the cold, overcast day outside.  She sighed, which drew the attention of Katie and Amara, who sat next to her in the small alcove off the main halls.  "What's up?" Katie asked softly.

"It's the end of November!  Where's the snow?" she asked rhetorically. [A/N- I don't know how early Scotland would get snow, but I'm pretending it's a little earlier than we do in New England, which is sometime in December, usually.]

Amara sat up and calculated something for a moment.  "Hey, tomorrow's Thanksgiving!" she exclaimed, smiling.  The other girls looked at each other, then back at Amara with raised eyebrows.  Amara grinned at their confusion.  "My mum's American, remember?  She always makes a big turkey dinner on the last Thursday of the month, which is Thanksgiving."  The girls nodded wisely, then shrugged at each other as Amara chuckled at them.

"Your mum's batty," Katie said, grinning.

"This has been established," Amara shot back as Ginny stifled a giggle.  

"Hey, at least she helped both of us control the mops on our heads that pass for hair!" the girls heard from down the hall.  They turned to see Harry and Hermione strolling towards them.  Amara flushed just slightly; Ginny was the only one who noticed, so she stored the information away for future teasing.

Until the previous summer, Ginny's hair had been as wild as Hermione's- Amara's mother (who had hair as vivid as Ginny's and even a bit curlier than either of them) had given Ginny an ample supply of Muggle hair supplies to help tame the frizzy, curly masses.  Hermione and Ginny now sported long, shiny curls that currently fascinated a number of students who randomly came up behind them and started playing with the springy locks. [A/N- welcome to my world ^_^] 

Ginny just grinned at the two older students.  "Are you guys going out riding later?" Amara asked a bit breathlessly.  Ginny's grin grew wider.

Harry made an indecisive grimace as he moved to stand between Ginny and Amara.  "It's awfully cold- don't know if Onyx would want to move from his nice warm stall."

Ginny laughed and punched his arm lightly.  "You mean _you're_ not sure if you want to get a bit chilled.  Oh, poor young Mr. Potter," she taunted, grinning.  "Doesn't want to take the risk of getting a- gasp- cold!"

The other girls laughed hysterically as Harry pounced on Ginny and got her in a headlock, messing up her hair.  He finally let her go, everyone breathless with laughter, and they all moved down the hallway to the Great Hall for lunch.

*   *   *

Draco's eyes narrowed as he watched the group tease each other.  He flushed as an familiar emotion- jealousy- coursed through his veins.  His sight seemed to narrow to Ginny and Harry; _How dare he touch her?  She's mine!_  He shook himself at that thought- _Dangerous ground, lad.  If Lucius-the-bloody-wanker could hear you now…_

He shook himself with an unhappy frown and moved down the hallway after the Golden Gryffs and their giddy friends.  

*   *   *

Late that night, Ginny stole on silent feet out to the stables; anyone watching (that could see her) would have marveled at how expertly she kept to the shadows.  She half-smiled as she remembered Fred and George teaching her "the fine art of sneaking" as they had called it- they had been so proud of her, and utterly amazed at how good she had gotten over the past few years.  Even Harry, with his much-vaunted Invisibility Cloak, couldn't match her as long as there were plenty of shadows around.  She knew how to move literally without a sound- and with the ancient castle's occasionally creaky floors, that was quite an accomplishment.  She had dodged Filch (and more importantly, Mrs. Norris) several times in her stay at Hogwarts, simply by being absolutely silent and keeping to the darker places.  

When she finally made it out to the small stable Hagrid had erected, she breathed a sigh of sheer relief; it had been truly nerve-wracking to make a mad dash across the moon-drenched field.  She walked down the aisle to Aestus's stall, and the big stallion poked his head out over the door, eyes still sleepy.  

"Aww, did I wake you?" she asked quietly, scratching the base of his horn gently as he blew softly into her other palm.  "I couldn't sleep, so I decided to visit you.  And look!" she cried softly, pointing out his back window to the paddock beyond.  "Snow!"

Indeed, millions of flakes were quietly drifting down to the ground, already coating it with a light dusting.  Aestus whuffed again and nudged her shoulder a bit more energetically.  She chuckled and obediently opened the half-door to lead him out and down the aisle.  She walked him quietly past Hagrid's cabin to the small clearing that was just out of sight of the castle.

Ginny stood beside her faithful friend for several long minutes, alternately staring up at the sky and closing her eyes to feel the tickle of snowflakes hitting her skin.  "Butterfly kisses…" she said, half under her breath.

"What?" a voice said from quite nearby.  She started and whirled to see Draco, hands in the pockets of his Muggle-looking (what??) fleece and snow in his hair.  Aestus snorted a greeting and the young man smiled at him briefly.  "What were you saying?" he repeated to Ginny, softer this time.  

"The snow…" she said, flushing slightly and looking away.  "It feels like butterfly kisses."  She half held her breath, expecting Draco to make a cutting remark, especially after the way he had talked to her last time- but she looked up a moment later to see him smiling gently at her.  Not for the first time, she marveled at how different he looked without that Malfoy Sneer™ disfiguring his face.  

He moved a little closer to her, then looked up at the sky.  He sighed and smiled again as he closed his eyes.  "It really does," he said softly, then chuckled under his breath.  "Look what you've done to me, I'm agreeing with you on something as silly as that."  It didn't sound disgruntled at all; rather, he was actually teasing her gently.  Ginny smiled wider, then turned her own face to the clouds again.  

"I suppose blizzards are all very dramatic," she said a few moments later, keeping her eyes closed.  "But there's something very… restful about a quiet snowfall that just tucks the world into bed."

"…Beautiful," he said, half to himself, a moment later.  Ginny opened her eyes and turned to him to find him staring, not at the snow-filled sky- but at her.

Her breath caught in her throat as he slowly, gracefully closed the distance between them.  He lifted a hand to touch the side of her face, then slowly lowered his lips to hers in a gentle kiss that warmed her from the inside.

A/N- awwww!! Totally fluffy and clichéd, I know, but I couldn't help myself ^_^ Anyway- see, Draco can occasionally be sweet too!  Though he might be a bit jealous… we'll have to see what happens with that, now won't we? ^_^ anyway, see the little button??

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	9. Just for a change, Chapter 8

A/N- Thanks bunches to:Trancos (You rock so much! Thanks!) Sam (Oh my god, what an incredible compliment… wow, you really know how to make a wannabe's day! ^_^ Too bad I can't write original fic. Oh well!) a-broken-heart-still-beats (You are so lucky! I wanna live in Scotland!! And I **_really_** want a horse!!! ::sigh:: some people have all the luck… ^_~) Draco_lover (Thanks so much!!  You're supposed to be confused at this point, I only reveal my fiendish plots at the end) Aelys (^_^  *pleased*) kneh13 (Thanks, here ya go!)  fEEdLestEEx (::chortles:: so glad you like!)

Okayyyy… ::cracks fingers and warms up hands:: first crack at actually writing in… five months?  Six?  Something like that.  Anyway, I am back! Enjoy!

Hehehe, guess who makes a little cameo in this one?? ^_^

FIC HERE!

Ch. 8

Ginny yawned and stretched Thursday morning; her eyes felt like they were full of sand.  _Well, I suppose that's to be expected after a late night…_ She hadn't gotten back to her room until at least 2 am.  She felt her face flush and a silly grin spread across it when she thought of the events of the previous night.

"Well, well, _some_body had a busy night last night," one of her roommates teased.  "Out until all hours, waking up with that _goofy_ grin… what _will_ everyone think?"

Ginny threw a pillow at her, still glowing.  He had been so sweet… nothing really "bad" had happened of course- but he had acted so different than he usually did!  He had treated her like a precious, beautiful thing, like a dream made real.  It was a bit odd, really; they hadn't kissed for the entire hour they were out there, (though she would have liked to!), and occasionally she had looked at him and seen a very strange expression on his face.  If she hadn't known any better, she would think it was almost fear… she snorted to herself.  _Draco Malfoy, afraid of anything… right._

*   *   *

As Ginny sat in the Great Hall yawning over her breakfast, she couldn't seem to keep her eyes from periodically straying to the Slytherin table.  Draco didn't show up the whole meal- why?  Did he just sleep in?  _I wish I could've_, she thought, grinning sleepily.  

"Why so happy, Gin?" Ron asked curiously from across the table.  "You're usually griping about something over breakfast."

"I do not!" she protested.  Ron rolled his eyes and nudged Harry, who was staring rather dazedly at the Ravenclaw table, with his elbow.  

"Eh, what?" he asked, sounding rather confused.  Ron stifled a chuckle and asked, "Isn't Ginny usually rather grouchy in the morning?"

Harry hedged as Ginny _harrumphed_ indignantly.  "I wouldn't say grouchy, exactly… certainly not this smiley, I'd say," he said, a knowing twinkle in his eye.  "So, what happened to you last night?" he asked, making Ginny flush and splutter a rather incoherent denial.  Ron, confused but getting closer, looked from a red-faced Ginny to a now laughing Harry several times, and seemed to put things together.

"Hey…" he said slowly, "Did you- are- Ginny?" he stopped, looking rather helpless as a deep red flush traveled up his neck and face.  He took a deep breath, looked down at his hands, and without looking up, said, "DidyouandHarrydosomethinglastnight'causeifyoudidthatwouldbereallywierdandpleasepleasePLEASEtellmeyoudidn'tdoanythingbad!"

Ginny and Harry both looked at him, flabbergasted for a moment, then burst out laughing.  Hermione, who had been watching but keeping her nose out of it, was hard-pressed to keep from following suit as Ron spluttered some more, then realized just how stupid he sounded and grinned sheepishly.  After a few minutes, the four of them finally calmed down and got up to go to their first classes of the day.  

On her way to Transfiguration, Ginny passed Draco in the hall; she tried to catch his eye, but he wasn't looking her way.  She paused a moment after he passed, feeling a slight chill of foreboding.  _Nonsense,_ she scolded herself.  _Even if he had noticed me, he wouldn't have been able to say hello or anything- people would think he was losing it._  She shrugged off the nagging feeling of doubt and continued into McGonnagal's classroom.  

*   *   *

Ginny vigorously curried Aestus's coat, biting he lip to hold back angry tears.  How could Draco have ignored her like he had all day?  He had acted like he couldn't even see her when they went out riding!  _Maybe he regrets kissing me last night,_ she thought miserably.  Her brushing slowed and finally stopped as she screwed her eyes tightly shut against the pain the thought caused her.  Aestus, sensing her distress, brought his head around and nudged her shoulder gently.  Ginny, her breath coming sharply against the ache in her chest, crumpled against his warm shoulder and let the tears flow freely.

*   *   *

[That morning]

Draco paced around his room, fidgeting nervously.  Luckily, since he was a prefect, Lucius had gotten him a room of his own, so there was no one else to disturb- and they surely would have been disturbed if someone else did live there!  Draco hadn't stopped pacing since he had returned last night; he was one of those people that either needed to do something while they thought or looked like zombies, depending on the emotion involved.  He hadn't been able to stop the emotions and thoughts from whirling round his head the whole night long.  _What is this?  I've never felt like this before… What do I do?_  An emotion like this had control over him, and if there was anything the years with Lucius had taught him, you couldn't let anyone control you.  He smiled grimly, with nothing of humor in the expression.  _After all, how long did he control me with Mother, and vice versa?_  He resolved to keep himself far away from the entirely too bewitching young woman.  For her safety and his.

He avoided Ginny any time he could; he skipped breakfast, instead sneaking into the kitchen and getting some toast and tea.  When he walked in the halls, he could sense when she was nearing, and looked away, so he wouldn't have to see her hopeful face.  He couldn't avoid her, though, when the time came to exercise Aurea.  The pale mare categorically refused to go out without Aestus by her side, so Draco was forced to wait for Ginny before saddling up.  He didn't acknowledge her presence at all, though he noticed her angry, hurt expression when he snuck a glance when she wasn't looking at him.  A stab of guilt gnawed at his insides, but he quelled it angrily, thinking, _It's better for both of us if last night never happens again.  If she stays angry at me, neither of us will be tempted._  He couldn't help watching her, however, as she groomed her tall mount after the ride.  Since he was hidden in the shadows in the back of Aurea's stall, she didn't notice him.  He felt his heart wrench when he saw her break down into quiet sobs.  _I'm sorry, Ginny,_ he thought at her miserably.  _I'm sorry…_

*   *   *

A week later, as he was eating breakfast, Draco felt a sharp poke in his side.  He jerked slightly, then turned angrily to Blaise, who had just sat down next to him.  "What the bloody hell was that for?" he snapped.  Blaise returned his death glare easily, his amber eyes snapping with ire.  

"What the hell do you think you're doing to the Weaslet?" he demanded sharply.  

Draco sputtered, "What are you talking about?  She-"

Zabini cut him off sharply with an upraised hand.  "Stuff it.  I'm not blind, and neither is anyone else."  He cut Draco's indignant response off again.  "A little bird told me she thought something happened between you two last week.  Apparently, Ginny was giddy for a day or two, then cried on Flagstaff and Singer's shoulders for the entire week after."

"So what does that have to do with me?" Draco asked arrogantly, his Sneer™ back in full force.  Inside, the guilt he had suppressed was raging again.  

Blaise snorted.  "You think you're that slick, Malfoy?" he replied disdainfully.  "I saw you sneak out last Wednesday night, and I heard you pacing the whole bloody night after you came back."  He leaned forward, jabbing a finger into Draco's breastbone as he continued.  "Keep treating her like this and you _will_ be sorry."

Draco laughed bitterly.  "What could you do to me, Zabini?" _That I'm not doing to myself already,_ he added silently.  

The other Slytherin stared at him stonily.  "Who said it would be me doing anything?" he asked softly.  Draco nearly squirmed under the piercing intensity of those fierce eyes; it was almost like Zabini could look right through him.  He looked away uncomfortably, muttering another halfhearted denial.  Blaise just watched him a moment longer, then turned away.  

*   *   *

Katie hurried out to the alicorn stables, eager to see her filly after the rainy weekend.  As she walked into the dimly lit space, she saw a familiar dark head poking out of her stall.  Katie smiled and walked over to her.  "Hi, Ruffian!" she said softly.  Amara had helped her name the filly; apparently she looked exactly like a very famous Muggle racehorse from the 70's who had died at only 3 years old, unbeaten until she broke her leg in a race.  Katie wasn't superstitious, and didn't think the name was ill-omened; rather, she thought it was fitting.  Her Ruffian was the fastest of the alicorns except for Aestus, and was only gaining on the big red as she grew older.  

When she heard footsteps from the entrance, Katie turned from saddling Ruffian to see a familiar figure in the doorway.  She smiled happily, then ran over to the tall young man and threw her arms around him.  He chuckled and returned the embrace warmly.  He turned her face up to his and smiled down at her before kissing her lightly.  Katie sighed slightly and kissed him back, this time a bit more insistently.  There was silence in the stable for a few minutes; it was soon broken by a snort from the gray colt stabled next to Ruffian.  The pair broke apart, giggling, as Blaise looked at his mount.  He shook his head, grinning, as the young gray tossed his head and whinnied at his rider.  Kissing Katie lightly again, he walked over to Watcher and gave him a greeting scratch.   

"Why'd you call him Watcher, anyway?" she asked curiously.  "He's spacier than I am- he doesn't watch anything!"  

Blaise smiled at her.   "It's really short for Stormwatcher," he said as he grabbed the colt's tack to saddle up quickly.  "You should see him when it's thundering out- has to have his head out the back window, watching the clouds."  He laughed a bit, then continued.  "Sometimes I think he wants to be up there, racing the lightning."

Katie looked at the storm-gray colt, trying to imagine him staring at the sky fixedly.  He looked at her for a moment, then was distracted by a half-grown cat winding through his front ankles.  He bent his long neck to look at the smaller animal quizzically, then snorted as the kitten batted his nose, claws padded.  Katie shook her head and laughed at the rather scatterbrained young horse as Blaise saddled him up.  

"Ready?" he asked.  She nodded and they both walked their mounts out of the barn to a clear, cold December day.

*   *   *

Amara sat curled up in a big over-stuffed sofa, staring at the lit fireplace in a little room only she and a select few knew about  She sighed sadly and hugged her knees a little tighter.  _I miss him so much…_ She knew the first Christmas without a loved one was always the hardest, but it just seemed, since she was away at school and never saw Danny anyway, that he would be there waiting when she got home for the holidays.  Just like always.  Sometimes she almost forgot, for a second- then the memories and the grief would come crashing in again.  

She remembered last Christmas so clearly…

~*~*~*~*~

Amara sighed in absolute contentment; there was a roaring fire in the fireplace, a blizzard howled outside the walls of her home, and her two best friends from school were with her, her family, and her other best friend for Christmas.  How could life get any better?

Ginny stretched and got up from her place by the fire.  "Mrs. Singer, how old _is_ this piano, anyway?"

Amara's mum smiled back at the other redhead and thought a moment before answering.  "Well, it was at least 80 years old when we got it, and 'Mara was only 8 at that point, so it's got to be almost 90 by now."

Ginny's eyes widened respectfully as she turned back to the lovely old instrument.  She touched the chipped ivory keys lightly, almost caressingly, then turned back to the older woman with a pleading expression in her hazel eyes.  "Could you play something for us?  Please?"

Amara and Katie joined in begging shamelessly.  "Please, Mum!  I haven't heard you play in months!"  Amara smiled suddenly.  "Play Billy for us!  It's my favorite… pleeeaaase?"

Her father chuckled at her wheedling and poked his wife gently.  "G'wan with ye, 'Lana."

Amara's mother chuckled and shook her head, then uncurled from her favorite chair and walked over to the obviously lovingly restored piano.  She took her place on the bench with obvious pleasure, then murmured to herself, "Let's see if I can still remember this…"

Amara chuckled; her mother always warned everyone that she hadn't seriously played in years, and it was their own fault for making her play if she butchered the song.  

Mrs. Singer's fingers rested for a moment on the old keys, then took up a slightly plaintive, jazzy tune.  After a short introduction, her voice joined in:

"Some folks like to get away

Take a holiday from the neighborhood

Hop a flight to Miami Beach, or to Hollywood

But I'm takin' a Greyhound 

On the Hudson River line

I'm in a New York state of mind.

I've seen all the movie stars

With their fancy cars and their limousines

Been high in the Rockies, under the evergreens.

But I know what I'm needin', 

And I don't want to waste more time

I'm in a New York state of mind.

It was so easy, livin' day by day

Out of touch with the rhythm and blues

But now I need a little give and take

The New York Times

The Daily News

Comes down to reality, 

And it's fine with me, 'cause I play it sly

Don't care if it's Chinatown, or on Riverside

I don't have any reasons

Left them all behind

I'm in a New York State of mind.

I'm just takin' a Greyhound

On the Hudson River line…

Cause I'm in… 

I'm in a New York state of mind."

She played the old song flawlessly, with feeling and great enjoyment; it was obviously a family favorite, from the happy smiles on Amara, Danny, and her father's faces.  The little group sat quietly for a few moments after she had finished, savoring the warm glow of well-being that had permeated the room.  The older woman quietly got up from the piano bench and snuggled back into the sofa next to her husband.

~*~*~*~*~

Amara smiled sadly at the memory; after her mother had served everyone a lovely dinner, Ginny and Katie had pelted her with questions about some of the words of the song.  All the Muggles had laughed hysterically about some of the things they took for granted that where so odd and out-of-place in the wizarding world.  Greyhounds, the Hudson River; Ginny and Katie knew nothing of either, and barely knew anything about New York City, since not many American wizards lived there.  Amara and Danny had teased them mercilessly about their lack of knowledge of Muggle culture for the rest of the time they were there, but the two witches had given as good as they had gotten.  

As Amara stared into the fire, she barely noticed the tears trickling down her face.  Someone else did, though.

Harry watched Amara a bit worriedly; she had been getting better over the past few weeks, but every now and then, he still got the feeling her pain was as sharp as ever.  He walked over to her still form and touched her shoulder lightly, making her jump and gasp.  

"Are you all right?" he asked softly, then shook himself and muttered, "Right, and you'd really be crying if you were perfectly fine.  Sorry."

Amara wiped her face and managed an unsteady smile at the obviously concerned young man.  "I'll be okay, it's just hitting me a bit hard at the moment… Christmas and all, you know," she said quietly, looking down at her hands.  Harry sat down next to her and put a soothing arm around her slim shoulders.  He didn't say anything; he knew she would get just as much comfort from him just sitting there with her as anything else.  

The young redhead sighed and leaned her head against Harry's warm shoulder.  He turned a bit to lean more against the arm of the sofa, and placed a soft kiss on Amara's hair as she laid her head on his chest.  The two watched the fire dance cheerfully until the tall flames were only embers.  

*   *   *

In the library, all was still- except for a small pool of light in a corner.  Nearby, a figure searched the shelves for a certain, well-remembered book.  Long, elegant hands trailed along the dusty spines, then stopped.  There, half-hidden between two mammoth tomes, there was the one…

In the library, all was still.

A/N- So, first chapter after the evil hiatus is finally out- meh, now that I'm posting it I don't like it quite as much.   Anyway, please tell me what you think!!  Lurkers, this means you too!


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